BMW knocks Toyota off top spot

BMW M5

Luxury German carmaker BMW has overtaken global giant Toyota as the world's most valuable vehicle brand, says market research company Millward Brown.

Its annual BrandZ list of the world's top 100 brands had BMW at No 23 followed by Toyota at 28. The next most valuable automotive brand was Mercedes-Benz at 46. For the second year in a row, computer company Apple was the world's top brand with a brand value of NZ$237.5 billion. IBM was No 2 with NZ$150b, and Google No 3 with NZ$140b.

Millward Brown measures brand equity based on interviews with more than 1 million consumers globally and an analysis of the financial and business performance of each company using data from Bloomberg and Datamonitor.

BMW was valued at NZ$32b, Toyota at NZ$28.3b, and Mercedes-Benz at NZ$21b. Volkswagen and Audi also improved their brand value, VW to NZ$11b and Audi to NZ$6.1b, says the survey. South Korea's Hyundai and Japan's Lexus entered the top 10 automotive brands for the first time. Hyundai was valued at NZ$4.6b and Lexus at NZ$4.4b.

Millward Brown is headquartered in New York. Its global brand director Peter Walsh said BMW effectively communicated what sets it apart from other carmakers, while backing up its message with a "very decent product".

"As one of the great brands in the world, BMW has been absolutely consistent in the long-term regarding what is meaningfully different about their brand, in highly competitive market places," Walshe told Automotive News.

BMW was also the most valuable automotive brand in 2010. Toyota held the top spot from 2006 until 2009 and again in 2011. Toyota retained its position as one of the world's best brands, but lost its top place in the ranking in the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disasters that affected all Japanese carmakers last year, Walshe said.

"Toyota is certainly seen as a good value, very reliable and very trustworthy, which are all tremendous qualities, especially for mid-range buyers. The problem with Toyota has to do with its financials, not brand, due to the disasters, which were clearly out of its control." The disasters in Japan last year also negatively affected the brand-value rankings of Honda, Nissan, and Lexus, but all three remained in the top 10.

Mercedes-Benz, VW, and Audi were able to rise in the ranking, successfully expanding their presence in Asia, especially in China, Walshe said.

"The reason these three German brands are doing well is because German cars are benefiting tremendously from exports to Asia".

Hyundai is the first South Korean brand to enter the top 10. Its brand value benefits from customers worldwide who seek quality and style at a better price than that charged by the premium brands, said Walshe.

BrandZ and Millward Brown calculated value based on branded earnings and a survey to determine how much of those earnings are generated by the brand's close bond with customers.

For companies like Apple, the loyalty of customers is more than a balance sheet could reflect. Brand value differentiated winners from losers and helped "sustain brands through a challenging year" marred by shaky consumer confidence and financial woes, said the survey.